soccercruiser87
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MANCHESTER, N.H. -- A small cargo plane crashed into a Wal-Mart garden center near Manchester Airport Tuesday morning, and the pilot was hospitalized in fair condition.
The plane went down just before 7:30 a.m. No one was at the loading dock where the plane crashed after clipping a pole and damaging a greenhouse and storage trailers.
"He came down in the perfect spot," Manchester Police Chief John Jaskolka said. "If you're going to crash a plane in this area, this is the place to do it."
The plane crashed in a busy business area near the airport, but officials said the pilot, Paul Seyler-Schmidt, 32, of Bangor, Maine, was able to avoid hitting any major structures.
"Because he did hit the greenhouse, he slowed down enough so that the nose of the plane ended up in the bushes," Jaskolka said.
Nearby workers and residents rushed to the scene to help Seyler-Schmidt out of the remnants of the cockpit and the flaming wreckage.
"We carried him across the street," witness Dan Lockner said. "It was just minutes, and then the plane exploded."
Seyler-Schmidt was taken to Elliott Hospital.
"I am extremely grateful to all the people who helped me at the scene of the plane crash this morning, including the Good Samaritans who helped me immediately after the crash and the emergency personnel who treated me," he said in a statement released by the hospital.
There was no immediate explanation of why the twin-engine plane crashed. Officials said that the pilot lost an engine soon after taking off from Manchester Airport. Federal Aviation Administration investigators were on the scene.
"We really don't have any cause at this point," airport spokesman Kevin Dillon said. "We can't speculate at this point."
Seyler-Schmidt tried to turn the plane around to make an emergency landing but couldn't get back to the airport before crashing.
"Apparently, both wings had sheered off the aircraft, and with all the fuel, a major fire ensued," Manchester Fire Chief James Burkish said.
The crash happened just as several businesses were opening in the area. Witnesses watched as the plane dropped low over the Wal-Mart parking lot, trying to get back to the runway.
"I just saw it coming down really low over here," witness Becky Ramos said. "I thought it was going to hit this rack of cars over here. It was really scary, and as soon as he hit the ground, I just picked up the phone and dialed 911."
"I was able to see the plane off in the distance," witness James Hill said. "It sounded like an old World War II aircraft. It was that loud. At that point, I could see it go over the top of the mall, and it was going sideways with the engine rushing, and at that point, you knew there was something wrong."
As the plane hit the ground, Scott Guerette at the neighboring Auto Fair Honda gathered some employees, grabbed fire extinguishers and headed toward the crash.
"Myself and four other guys grabbed some fire extinguishers because there was some jet fuel leaking under the fence," Guerette said. "So I thought the least we could do is put out the flame going down into the drain."
The cargo plane wasn't carrying anything hazardous, and because the pilot had been rescued and removed from the scene, firefighters were able to get the blaze under control quickly.
Officials said that the plane was loaded with UPS packages en route to Bangor. The pilot had flown the route on a regular basis.
The National Transportation Safety Board will be on the scene Tuesday morning. Police will be guarding the wreckage until then.
source: www.wmur.com
thank god it didnt crash into the main part of the store and that the pilot is alright.
The plane went down just before 7:30 a.m. No one was at the loading dock where the plane crashed after clipping a pole and damaging a greenhouse and storage trailers.
"He came down in the perfect spot," Manchester Police Chief John Jaskolka said. "If you're going to crash a plane in this area, this is the place to do it."
The plane crashed in a busy business area near the airport, but officials said the pilot, Paul Seyler-Schmidt, 32, of Bangor, Maine, was able to avoid hitting any major structures.
"Because he did hit the greenhouse, he slowed down enough so that the nose of the plane ended up in the bushes," Jaskolka said.
Nearby workers and residents rushed to the scene to help Seyler-Schmidt out of the remnants of the cockpit and the flaming wreckage.
"We carried him across the street," witness Dan Lockner said. "It was just minutes, and then the plane exploded."
Seyler-Schmidt was taken to Elliott Hospital.
"I am extremely grateful to all the people who helped me at the scene of the plane crash this morning, including the Good Samaritans who helped me immediately after the crash and the emergency personnel who treated me," he said in a statement released by the hospital.
There was no immediate explanation of why the twin-engine plane crashed. Officials said that the pilot lost an engine soon after taking off from Manchester Airport. Federal Aviation Administration investigators were on the scene.
"We really don't have any cause at this point," airport spokesman Kevin Dillon said. "We can't speculate at this point."
Seyler-Schmidt tried to turn the plane around to make an emergency landing but couldn't get back to the airport before crashing.
"Apparently, both wings had sheered off the aircraft, and with all the fuel, a major fire ensued," Manchester Fire Chief James Burkish said.
The crash happened just as several businesses were opening in the area. Witnesses watched as the plane dropped low over the Wal-Mart parking lot, trying to get back to the runway.
"I just saw it coming down really low over here," witness Becky Ramos said. "I thought it was going to hit this rack of cars over here. It was really scary, and as soon as he hit the ground, I just picked up the phone and dialed 911."
"I was able to see the plane off in the distance," witness James Hill said. "It sounded like an old World War II aircraft. It was that loud. At that point, I could see it go over the top of the mall, and it was going sideways with the engine rushing, and at that point, you knew there was something wrong."
As the plane hit the ground, Scott Guerette at the neighboring Auto Fair Honda gathered some employees, grabbed fire extinguishers and headed toward the crash.
"Myself and four other guys grabbed some fire extinguishers because there was some jet fuel leaking under the fence," Guerette said. "So I thought the least we could do is put out the flame going down into the drain."
The cargo plane wasn't carrying anything hazardous, and because the pilot had been rescued and removed from the scene, firefighters were able to get the blaze under control quickly.
Officials said that the plane was loaded with UPS packages en route to Bangor. The pilot had flown the route on a regular basis.
The National Transportation Safety Board will be on the scene Tuesday morning. Police will be guarding the wreckage until then.
source: www.wmur.com
thank god it didnt crash into the main part of the store and that the pilot is alright.
